Zabdiel a



represents alpot orerucible of iron, for .containing` the -melted metal to be. operated upon. -It is seti-in a-'funace of' masonry, B, and is heated by a fire uponthe grateC, which also heats the entire workingpart of the-al'ipaatusn l .t

' At th'e bottom-of the crucible is a pipe,D, which has Va. small orice, sayone-iiftieth to one-hundredth of fan inch` in diameter, which is closed by the valve E,wope rate d by a rod, F, 'as is shown, "Thispipo projects downward some distance into the converting-chamberG, and closeto the outlet of the, same is` 'the'liorizontal blast-pipe H, whichhas an orifice alittle larger thanthat of the pipe D, and throws a .jet of jcom'p`ressed air or o ther. gas across the jet of unetalthatV flows'from the ,cruciblet Thiiiy blastmay heated,` if the operation -requires it, beforebeinginjec'ted, and itsaduiission isto be controlled by suitable valves or cocks. It issupi plied byl-a condensing-pump, operating in the usual manner, which isitself supplied with atmospheric. air, or i gas, or'a mixture of them, as the case may require. f i

The. chamber-Grv may 'be made of an'y form required, and provided with suitable means at the outletrto u permit the escape of the spent gases and retain the valuable products of theoperation; but as thesefo'rn' no -part of the inventionherein set forth, they are not shown.

A'.llie operation of' the' apparatus s as follows', taking, t`ore. ainple;v its application tothe oxidation-ot'l lead in making ltharge, or 4the carbonate of lead, or theseparation'otf leadgircmI its alloys, either and all of'which` the apparatus shown is capable of effecting:

The orucible .if is filled with the metal -t be operated upon, and lieatedby the furnace tev a'v red heat, and-.a blast of atmospheric air, of,'say, fifteen to twentypoundsfpessure tothe square inch-more or less, isi-supplied' vto the pipe H.. The valvc'E then beingopened, allows asmalllst'reain of .hot metal Yto flow from the: pipe D,

which-meeting theblast from' the-pipe H, isdispersed into'a in'e metallic mist, andin'that subdivided condition instantly combines chemically with the oxygen of the blast, 'and is completely converted -into oxide', with a considerable;disengagement of light.and heat, and/leaves any silver or'g`old that may b e present lin the ,lead in' minute metallic particles mixed with the'okide', hvhich may be separated therefrom `by well-known 'means.

Vwith;carbonic-acid'gas to u suiiicient'degree to earbonize'tlie If itfbedesired to convert the oxideinto carbonatefoflead, the.blas tfrcm the: pipe4 would be vsupplied i v "lead as festas it is` converted into oxide,` or .the'" carbonio-.acid gas might b eintroduced intothe` chamber G by a separate pipe," K, shown in red lines, by which,

. -also, any other gas' may he supplied-to thechamber in regulated quantity instead, so as to act "upe n the oxide at the'vinstant of its formation. y

' If itwer'e desired simply to'reduce the metal 'to alfine powder 'withoutmridising it, then Ythe blast from 'thel 'pipe-H should be--supplied withi'such gas that it would `not or could; net furnish oxygen to the` meltedmetal, i

.'- whilets mechanical er dispersin'g'p'ower would be retained. v

that would be made to adaptfthe apparatus to any special use.

lThese examples .will serve to explain the general mode of operation, and the-nature of the. modifications v In the drawings, xbu`t one deliveryjet to the crucibl'e, in'comliinaticn with' on'o blast-jet, is shownv in the process may beus'efullylemployedin certain operations without' employingfthe whole eff it,

f eonverting-chamberfas this isthe -simplestformin which the apparatus can be presented, butin practice .itis Y' co-operating inpreciselyjthesume way.

l "It is obvious that'the apparatus 'may .be modiiied in a `great variety of ways, and that `agiant of'l the entire s, for instance, in

' intended to-.smploy'a series of `dg elvery -jcts anda corresponding series'of blastjet's in the saine' chamber, Zbut`- -dispersing or subdividing :metals without acting upon lthei'n chemically, in which'case the convertitig-chamlxer v mightnot'be required; also, thefblastf 'of air or'gasmaybe useullyxemployed in a converting-'chamber in oporf atingupon a continuous regulated stream of lheated minerals, which had been previouslyredueed lto a 'fine powder byotller means, withsuch sgss'suppli'ed to the blastijet aswould u ct chemically upon the minerals in` that condition, and other .modifications of our-invention, of thesaine general nature, may obviously be made.y

We are aware that ithas been"lteretofore"assayed-tobrealrup streams of melted iron'by a blast, and reduce` vthemetal. to a granular or globular form, fertile purposerol'r"decarboniiingjt somewhat inthe process of eqnverting it into .wroughtjiro or steel, but n'.thoso instances thaiapparatus-employedwas not 'sich as would reduce the metal to parti'olesfscsmall that they could be instantaneously'aud entirely ro'ducedor converted into `other products by th e .eh'emical action ofthe blast, for'the reasouthatunless the particles .of' metal are vmade 'iexceedinglyminute,y so that their areapf surfacepreson-ted to the-actionpf the gases present shallbo verygreat iu proportion to' their diameter, andthe chemical action he 'thusJ `rendered general 'and instantaneous, the ccn'- version or reduction 'of the metal'willlnotbe eeeted, andthe'proeesspractic'ally cari-Lied out.

VWhat we claim as our invention, anddesire to-secure by Letters'Patent,'js-, -y-4 1'. The process. of disp'ersingor subdivding melted metalsor minerals. into line particles, by means of a blast'o'f highly-com`prssed ai'ror other gases, which imping'es .-up'on 'one ormore iinei streams thereof, the gases present, and the'temperaturcof the metal, beingrespectively such that'chevmicalactionf shall be .thereby pre.- rented, substantially as described.. L 2. The'process oi" convertiugmetals or minerals into other productmfb'y means cfa' jet or blast of njr or. gas, acting upon on'eor more fine str eaarisot`v saidmetals or mineralsiulajiieltedstate, las described, which Vjet or blast subdi'vides anddispersesthe material, andalso acts chemicallyupou tuesauie, substantially-as described.4

8, The process of converting metals. or 'mineralsV into otherproductsi, `y mea1is"9fa blast o i""air or other gas applied thereto, when ,said vmetals or minerals are continuously s'irpiplie'd.l in regulated quantities'to said blast' ns subdividedand.highlylheated condition, substantially as described.

4. The -treatment'ot metals' or minerals, by either of the methods-before claimed, in achamber filled an atmosphere chemically sovcomposed that by means of the same,='iu combination with'thel gas introduced by this .dispersing-blas't, 'the desired chemical 'reaction may be. produced oraprevented, substantislly'as described.

5. An apparatus, (for performing some of the operations describcd,) cnssting, substantially, of the combirmtion of a Crucible or reservoir with one mj more delivering-jets, a furnacc for heating thc Samb, and one or more blast'pipes corresponding to said jets, co-opezating4 substantially as described.

6. Au apparatus', consisting of the combination last claimed, in com substantially as described.

bination with the convertirig-chamber,A

7. Combining with the converting-chamber, as described, a manna for supplying gas thereto separate from tbe dispersing blast, substantially as described.

'Exccutefi7 December 7, 1867. i

Z. A. WII'JLAIIRJ),`

WM. G. ADAMS.

Witnesses:

N. C. LOMBARD, WM. O. Hummm. 

